The Indigenous People of Biafra lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, has called on Ndigbo to boycott Arise TV until its anchor, Reuben Abati, tenders an unreserved apology.

The former Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to former President Goodluck Jonathan, Reuben Abati, recounted during a morning programme how a former minister could not buy land for his wife in Igbo land.

Abati’s statement that Ndigbo does not sell land to non-indigenes generated condemnation from the people of the South East region.

Most X users of Igbo extraction accused Abati of committing ethnic bigotry against the group.

In reaction on Friday, on his X handle, Ejiofor alleged that he had previously taken on the former presidential spokesman for his alleged anti-Igbo statement.

“When I confronted Abati frontally on a live television interview (TheMorningShow) a few years back about his deep-rooted hatred for Igbos and our struggle for freedom from enslavement within Nigeria’s political arrangement, I was fully seized of the disturbing facts of his ethnic bigotry. It is inborn in him; thank God he could not hide it any longer,” he narrated.

The IPOB lawyer demanded Arise TV’s owner, Nduka Obaigbena, mandate Abati to apologize to Ndigbo. He called on South East indigenes to boycott the station if Abati failed to tender a public apology.

“Reuben Abati must tender an unreserved public apology to Ndi Igbo, but if Nduka Obaigbena condones his anti-Igbo sentiment (Igbophobia), then, this should be a convenient point for Igbos to boycott, in its totality, the promoting of all programmes on Arise TV platforms,” Ejiofor stated.

The national leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has insisted its December 1, 2024, deadline for state governors to implement the new minimum wage remains unshakeable.

The Labour Union who disclosed this in a statement issued by NLC’s Head of Protocol and Public Relations, Benson Upah warned that non-compliance with the directive will not be tolerated.

Ubah emphasized that the ultimatum remains unchanged, urging state governments to finalize agreements with labour unions before the deadline, noting that states like Sokoto, Zamfara, Taraba, and Plateau have taken significant steps to comply.

Explaining further, he stated that Sokoto has initiated wage adjustment proposals, while Taraba and Plateau recently approved an N70,000 minimum wage.

Similarly, Zamfara state has put in plans for implementation after verifying its workforce.

However, states such as Cross River, Osun, and Imo remain in negotiation or unresponsive.

This has raised concerns about meeting the deadline set by NLC.

The NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) continue to monitor compliance across the nation, advocating for fair wages amidst rising inflation.

An Indian man awoke on a funeral pyre moments before it was to be set on fire after a doctor skipped a postmortem, medical officials said Saturday.

Rohitash Kumar, 25, who had speaking and hearing difficulties, had fallen sick and was taken to a hospital in Jhunjhunu in the western state of Rajasthan on Thursday.

Indian media reported he had had an epileptic seizure, and a doctor declared him dead on arrival at the hospital.

But instead of the required postmortem to ascertain the cause of death, doctors sent him to the mortuary, and then to be burned according to Hindu rites.

Singh, chief medical officer of the hospital, told AFP that a doctor had “prepared the postmortem report without actually doing the postmortem, and the body was then sent for cremation”.

Singh said that “shortly before the pyre was to be lit, Rohitash’s body started movements”, adding that “he was alive and was breathing”.

Kumar was rushed to hospital for a second time, but was confirmed dead on Friday during treatment.

Authorities have suspended the services of three doctors and the police have launched an investigation.

AFP